ArduCopter altitudinal limit?

Hi there, I'm looking into using an ArduCopter system to acquire aerial photosets in the high Himalaya, at altitudes approaching 5000 m a.s.l.

 

Does anyone know if this kind of altitude would present any problems to an ArduCopter (or similar) system (including lightweight camera as payload)? The main problem I envisage would be a decrease in effective flight time due to faster draining batteries as a result of decreasing lifting capacity because of the thinner air...

 

Any info greatly appreciated!

 

Matt

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  • Matt, when are you planning to go, how much lead time is there? Maybe members can do some testing for you.
  • 16,404 feet you might have problems with battery performance in the cold temps and with the electronics.

    If you look at the manuals of digital cameras and other equipment most of them are not designed to operate above 12,000 feet or so. The ATMega 2560 chip is industrial rated to operate down to -40c but who knows about the rest of the system.

    Standard Li po batteries are rated for 0-60 C temp so you are going to have problems there, I did not find anything on altitude they can work at.

    Good luck with the project, hopefully someone in Rockies in the US or Alps in Europe can provide some insight.

    You could test is a freezer and put the equipment in a partial vacuum to simulate the environment. A quick Google search says that air pressure drops 4% for ever thousand feet roughly so you are looking at a 65.5% drop in pressure.

  • you should keep an eye on the temperatures

    don't know what's the lower limit, but there could be some condensed water

    i would not fly a stock arducopter there

    you need bigger propellers, and if I were you, i would design a housing for the electronics

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